How to Overcome Laziness
from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit
See The Small, Not The Whole
Steps
- If possible, first figure out what one, single detail or problem is holding you back. Most likely, the sticking issue is smaller than you think it is, and you can get past it more easily than you think. Whatever it is, don't give up until you find a way to get past it somehow. Remember, it's probably one single, specific problem or detail.
- Now, think about the importance of the problem or goal. Is it something you can actually afford to ignore? Is it something that somebody else can help you with? Can you just forget about this and try a different approach altogether? Are you being too much of a perfectionist?
- Some who feel they might be "lazy" are actually recreating and reliving unpleasant or dreary "freezes" from childhood. No need to dig into your past. But if you do feel stuck, try jumping up, do a task, and tell yourself "Despite an old habit of freezing up, I can get up right now and be productive!"
- Decide to start the work and you are well on your way to completing it.
- Whatever task is at hand, take a step back, relax and see one small thing to do, then break it down into tiny, easily manageable steps at a realistic 15 minutes to do, i.e., just focus on one task, not the whole problem. Estimate how long it would take to do that one thing. Forget everything else, for now. Our brains seem to shut down when there is constant pressure to do this, do that, complete this by this or that date. You are your own boss.
- Gear yourself up into action by telling yourself something like: "I want to do this; I want to do this NOW! So I’ll just do it and rest later". Say it out loud if you have to! You'll find that you will have eventually talked yourself into wanting to do it!
- Finishing that little step will feel remarkably good, and tell yourself (out loud, if necessary) "Good stuff; you're on a roll; keep this up and you're going to make it to the end of this". Working towards little goals is actually the secret to big success: big successes are just made up of many little continuous successes.
- Don't forget to reward yourself for the very small things you complete or try. If you manage to do something that you didn't the day before, you deserve a nice treat. You need to reward yourself for completing each task, in order to feel good about having pushed yourself in order to get the job done. After the 'small' task is complete, reward yourself by going for a walk for a few minutes or eat some nuts or some other small reward/break (or relax doing something you would like to if you have already been out). Doing this will train your mind into wanting to work. As well, cumulative rewards make you feel confident -- and that's the REAL cure for laziness. Some say you may also want to punish yourself for each step you fail to achieve, but this is ill-advised as it will only reinforce the negative behavior that ultimately leads to avoidance at the prospect of failure.
- Don't stop now. It's hard to get on a roll, so once you're there, jump right onto your next goal as soon as you're done rewarding yourself. The longer you delay re-starting, the harder it will be to re-start. But the sooner you re-start, the more confident you will feel -- and that will reinforce the positive behavior that leads to feeling that you can do anything!
- It's one thing to find your motivation. But, it's another thing to keep it going when the going gets tough -- especially when it's an unforeseen problem! The more avoidant you are, the more you will feel like giving up. How to get past the tough point? Tell yourself over and over: "I really want to get past this; I really want to overcome this", until you believe that you actually don't want to give up.
- Stay off the couch until you are ready to take a break. And when you do sit, set a time when you will return to your task or to do other activities around the house: read a book, run a load of laundry, write to a friend, etc.
- Set some long term goals. If you have goals set up for yourself, you have something to look forward to. Pick goals which are high and will really inspire you. Picture what you really want. Low goals will not really motivate you. Your goals can be to save to buy a home, that red sports car, or fulfill your lifelong dreams (maybe you've been wanting to open a bookstore, an arcade, or start your own publishing company). Make a to-do list, both of large and small things, and prioritize.
- Also, make that list of all the smaller things you want: new clothes, a CD player, some furniture, even a dog. Think about the smaller things that you want every day; if it's constantly in your mind, you'll start moving toward those goals.
Tips
- Use common sense and picture the demon and the angel on your shoulders. If you work at it using common sense, the angel will win more and more often.
- If you do not work or need to leave your house first thing in the morning - set your alarm to wake up at a decent morning hour - say 7 am. Shower, get dressed and make yourself look presentable before leaving your room. Always dress as if you were planning to leave the house -- get out of the jammies before leaving the bedroom. Make your bed so it doesn't appeal to you later.
- Make sure you're on a healthy diet; junk food doesn't give your body the nutrients it needs to be active.
- Exercise. Go jogging through your neighborhood a few times a week, and in time you will see an improvement in the way that you feel and look. Working out will give you a lot of motivation and keep you from getting or feeling lazy. If you haven't worked out much before, stretch first, then start slow. If you don't, you will be in so much pain from sore or pulled muscles it will be easy to use it as an excuse to stop exercising.
- Make sure to drink a lot of water all day long, so you don't become dehydrated.
- Getting enough sleep each night can make you feel more awake. Depending on your activity and age, you may need up to 10 hours (teenagers) or as little as 5 (elderly).
- Avoid sugar and especially foods with "high fructose corn syrup" or "corn syrup" in the ingredients, as these can lead your body into metabolizing sugars instead of fats. Also, unnatural sugars (without fiber) may give you a short energy buzz, but then a blood sugar drop and you will feel fatigued and hungry.
- Consider getting rid of your television.
- Place copies of a goal sheet or your routine everywhere: one on the fridge, on your night stand, by your computer, on your bathroom mirror, even on the bedroom door. Just place them where you look or go to often.
Warnings
- If you think you are lazy but nobody else thinks you are, DO NOT WORK HARDER. It will cause more stress and will defeat your whole purpose here.
- If the suggestions above don’t increase your activity level or elevate your low mood, feeling of being overwhelmed, or prolonged very low self esteem, then you may have a more serious case of depression.
- Everyone will get depressed at some point, usually because of a depressing situation (like a death, a job loss, etc.) and most come out of it within a few days. But if the depression lasts two weeks or more, or it starts interfering with your work/school, or it occurs frequently, then you should seek professional advice to determine that you have no underlying medical condition and to receive appropriate treatment and advice.
Related wikiHows
- How to Tell if You Are Depressed
- How to Be Lazy Around the House
- How to Be Comfortable Around in Laws
- How to Clean a House
- How to Nap
- How to Balance Work and Play
Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Overcome Laziness. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.
No comments:
Post a Comment